BEIRUT, Lebanon — American support for a pair of diplomatic initiatives in Syria underscores the shifting views of how to end the civil war there and the West’s quiet retreat from its demand that the country’s president, Bashar al-Assad , step down immediately. The Obama...

BEIRUT (Reuters) - The Syrian wing of al Qaeda, the Nusra Front, said on Sunday it had shot down an army cargo plane carrying food and ammunition overnight, but Syrian state television blamed the loss of the aircraft and its crew on bad weather. Reuters could not...

(Reuters) - An Israeli helicopter fired two missiles in the Syrian province of Quneitra near the Israeli-occupied Golan Heights on Sunday, the Lebanese Hezbollah-run al-Manar news channel said. It did not specify the target of the strike in the area, called Amal Farms. The...

(Reuters) - France's Charles de Gaulle aircraft carrier is ready to be used to support military operations against Islamic State in Iraq , French President Francois Hollande told military personnel aboard the vessel on Wednesday. "Thanks to the Charles de Gaulle we will have...